Radiation is used in a variety of medical procedures (generally referred to herein as “radiological procedures”). For example, radiation is used in diagnostic procedures (i.e., procedures allowing non-invasive investigation of a patient), therapeutic procedures (i.e., procedures wherein discrete anatomical regions of a patient are irradiated as a treatment), and various invasive procedures such as fluoroscopic guidance and/or manipulation of instruments during surgical procedures.
Radiation is a valuable tool, but one which may require certain safeguards. Living tissue is susceptible to damage through high intensity, prolonged, and/or repeated exposure to radiation. Scatter radiation is a secondary radiation generated when the primary radiation interacts with the object being impinged. Scatter radiation has a frequency range lower than the primary radiation beam and generally moves in a variety of uncontrollable directions. Scatter radiation, like primary radiation, can cause damage to living tissue.
It is well documented that radiation exposure is cumulative. Although the amount of scatter radiation exposure that a patient receives during a single radiological procedure may not be harmful, a patient who undergoes a great number of such procedures may suffer damage due to the cumulative effect of scatter radiation. Studies demonstrate that the cumulative effect of scatter radiation may cause greater damage to an infant, toddler, child, and/or adolescent (i.e., pediatric patients) than to an adult patient. Such studies suggest that repeated exposure of scatter radiation to the head of a pediatrics patient may affect their cognitive ability as they develop.
Thus, there is a need for a radiation attenuation system for and method of shielding one or more non-target areas of a patient from scatter radiation. There is also a need for a radiation attenuation system that is configured to shield the head of patient from scatter radiation. There is further a need for a radiation attenuation system that is configured to shield the head of a pediatric patient. Yet further, there is a need for a radiation attenuation system that is configured to shield the head of a infant. There is further a need for a radiation attenuation system having a configuration that may reduce the tension or stress experienced by a patient during a radiological procedure. There is also a need for a radiation attenuation system that can be easily shipped and/or stored. There is further a need for radiation attenuation system addressing these, and/or any other need.